Nikolajevska Church

The oldest church in Zemun was built in 1745, in the place of an older wooden oratory. This is a single-nave building with a semicircular (five-sided on the outside) apse, decorated in the spirit of the 18th century Serbian Baroque churches. The spectacular 1761 Baroque iconostasis, made by the famous wood carver Aksentije Marković, is decorated with 73 icons painted by Dimitrije Bačević, one of the most influential Serbian 18th century artists, with the help of Dimitrije Popović. The wall paintings and a number of other art works were done in 1847 by the Zemun-based painter Živko Petrović. Art works of Stefan Grujić, Dimitrije Avramović, Živko Petrović and other Serbian 19th century icon painters are also kept in the church. Many valuable works of applied arts, guild flags, old church books and other 18th and 19th century objects of significance to the cultural and economic history of Zemun are preserved in the church as well. The building of the 18th century Serbian School is located in the northeastern part of the churchyard, which is an important artifact for the study of the development of Zemun’s education system.